Strategy

Sir John Major's speech at the 18th annual Hinton lecture on 10 November 2015.

Implications for charities and community groups from the Brexit referendum include political uncertainty, slow progress on government policy change, and potential financial challenges, according to a new briefing from NCVO.

Defending the rights of voluntary organisations to campaign and safeguarding public trust and confidence in charities are among the priorities outlined in NCVO’s new strategic plan, launched today.

The five-year strategy follows a consultation with NCVO members last year, and will take NCVO to its centenary year, 2019.

The Road Ahead 2020, which provides NCVO’s annual analysis of the pressures facing the charity sector in the next 12 months, says:

• charities will need to continue navigating changes in the political landscape, as the country moves into the next phase of Brexit
• pressure on charity funding, especially from local and national government, is set to continue
• Extinction Rebellion and other decentralised movements provide one potential model for securing support and engagement from the next generation of volunteers.

• NCVO’s Road Ahead advises charities to prepare for another financially challenging year
• A combination of Brexit uncertainty, tight government budgets and a slow economy will continue to add pressure on beneficiaries and front-line services
• NCVO’s annual PEST analysis of drivers for the sector provides food-for-thought for charities preparing for 2019  

The ongoing negotiations on a withdrawal deal will continue to create an uncertain economic environment, making accurately forecasting the UK economy difficult, the 2019 edition of NCVO’s future-gazing report series, Road Ahead, predicts. It highlights growth predictions from the Office for Budget Responsibility of just 1.6% for this year, significantly lower than many of our European counterparts.

Charity representative body the National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) has today launched the UK’s first not-for-profit public affairs consultancy service. Aimed at charities, the service will help organisations get a foothold in Westminster and Whitehall and help decision-makers better understand the needs of the people they support.

Commenting on the transfer of the role of minister for civil society from the Cabinet Office to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, Sir Stuart Etherington, chief executive of NCVO, which represents charities and volunteering, said:

We have always championed charities and the remarkable things they do for our society to every part of government. Charitable giving, volunteering and social action are part of the social and cultural heritage of Britain. Charities contribute to economic growth and run high quality, user-oriented public services. They can play an important role in delivering the ambitious social justice programme that Theresa May set out in her first speech as prime minister.

The National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) and the Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations (ACEVO) have agreed to work together to promote the positive impact of the voluntary sector. The decision was taken at a meeting last week of the chairs, vice-chairs and chief executives of the two umbrella organisations. This work is now underway.

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Good morning and welcome, everybody. It’s good to see so many of you here today in what we believe is the biggest conference of voluntary organisations that we have ever held.

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